Many motor vehicle transmissions may be configured to accept a power-take-off (PTO) unit as a source of power for operating various accessory devices. In a typical mechanization, the transmission includes a drive gear coupled to the transmission input shaft, and the PTO drive gear is maintained in meshing engagement with an input gear of the PTO unit. The transmission's PTO drive gear has a certain maximum torque capacity. The present invention provides an apparatus and method to ensure that the torque going to the PTO drive gear is within defined limits.